Over the last few months, there have been several episodes of electric two-wheelers catching fire. These incidents have raised concerns over the reliability and safety of two-wheelers, so much so that even the government has ordered a probe.
Rajiv Bajaj the managing director of homegrown Bajaj Auto blames such incidents on products being launched without proper validation.
"If you look at ICE (internal combustion) engines today, there are 10 large manufacturers at the most. But, there is a new electric vehicle every day. You call them start-ups, I call them up starts. I am amazed that people with no R&D, no engineering, no real purchase function, nothing more than just half an assembly facility, are importing stuff that has not been really validated for the marketplace and are putting it out," Bajaj said on Thursday.
He said that in the past ICE engines too had caught fire. He said the issue was not the fire itself, but how the issue was addressed by manufacturers.
He blames the wider environment for the current problems in the electric-two-wheeler industry. Today, many companies simply import kits and assemble electric two-wheelers here.
"Under the guise of low-speed vehicles, you can bring any junk from anywhere and put it onto the roads. So, where have we gone wrong? It is the environment we have created. That is what the concerned people have to reflect on," Bajaj said.
However, he doesn't see this impacting the wider industry adversely.
"It is not as if in the ICE engine world, people didn't try to do this. Even three-four years back, people were attempting to put together scooters and motorcycles made from kits. But none of that was able to sustain and it didn't have any collateral damage on the rest of the industry," said Bajaj.
Bajaj Auto on Thursday inaugurated its integrated manufacturing facility for electric vehicles at Akurdi near Pune, Maharashtra.
This is the site where the original Chetak scooter was manufactured back in the 1980s and 1990s. Now, this facility will exclusively make electric scooters. Currently, Bajaj Auto sells the Chetak electric scooter in the market.
The facility can produce around 800 Chetaks a day, or around 2.5 lakh units a year initially.
The company has invested Rs 300 crore in this facility. Including the supply chain, total investments are around Rs 800 crore. The facility will produce around 800 Chetaks a day, or around 2.5 lakh units a year initially.
Bajaj has invested Rs 300 crore in this facility, which will have a total capacity of 5 lakh units a year. Including the supply chain, total investments are around Rs 800 crore.
Everything about the Chetak is made in-house. There is an R&D facility on the campus itself and all the components of the electric scooter, including the battery, go through rigorous testing.
Electric vehicle sales have been rising in the last few years, mainly driven by two-wheelers and Bajaj officials said the trend was looking strong.
While Bajaj's current focus is on the Chetak, there are plans to launch an electric motorcycle in the future.
"We have work going on in our R&D, which will design a platform, which is even more amenable specifically for motorcycles," said Rakesh Sharma, executive director.